This Green Bean salad is one of the quickest side dishes you can prepare using only four ingredients. It is incredibly simple to make, as the beans, after being cooked and still warm get tossed in delicious extra virgin olive oil and sliced garlic.

This salad, using fresh green beans, when they are in season, is an excellent choice to accompany almost any meat or fish dish.

In this recipe I slice the garlic, since this allows the option to remove it easily if someone would only like a hint of garlic flavour without a stronger one, even though traditionally the garlic is very finely chopped.

Best served still warm or at room temperature and in the summer is very refreshing dish taken out of the fridge.

This side dish is a perfect example of simplicity at its best and it has been with me as long as I can remember.

I am sharing here how it has been prepared in my family.

Ingredients

Serves 4 as part of meal

500g fresh green beans
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (the best you can afford)
1 Tbsp red or white wine vinegar (can use balsamic vinegar)
1 clove of garlic(peeled and crushed or very finely sliced or chopped) You can replace garlic with finely sliced onion.

Method

Trim the stalk ends off the beans, place them in a colander and wash well with cold running water.

Place the beans in a pan with boiling unsalted water and cook the beans for about 15 minutes or just until al dente (tender but still with a bit of bite).

Drain well and place the beans in a large bowl. Add a pinch of sea salt, extra virgin olive oil, sliced, chopped or crushed garlic and toss well. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

Serve and enjoy!

This comforting, rustic, vegetable side dish is super delicious and super easy to make, perfect to accompany just about any grilled or roasted meats or fish.

I am sharing with you the recipe my nona and my mother have made this dish very often when fresh green beans were in season and tasting at their best.

This is a very popular dish during the summer and end of summer.

My maternal grandfather grew green beans at his vegetable garden, they got picked and enjoyed all the way through the summer, but somehow it would be the very last batch, at the end of the summer, that tasted the best. Did it really, or is this just an impression stored in my nostalgic box of memories? As a child I was aware that eating that last few green beans meant that the summer would very soon drew to a close...

Traditionally green beans in tomato sauce are eaten with soft polenta or just with some bread. It can also be served with cooked rice, fried eggs or on bruschetta.

Ingredients

Serves 4 as part of meal

500g fresh green beans, washed and trimmed
1 medium onion (about 140g), finely chopped
250g tomatoes, washed and roughly chopped (I used fresh mini San Marzano tomatoes but you can use other varieties or good quality tinned tomatoes of your choice.) If using fresh tomatoes make sure the tomatoes are nicely ripe and sweet. You can change the quantity of the tomatoes according to your preference.
a bunch of fresh flat leaf parsley, stalks included (about 16g), finely chopped
3 generous Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
sea salt
150ml water

Method

Wash and trim green beans.

Cut them in three or four pieces.

Peel the onion and chop it finely then peel and crush the garlic.

In a fairly big pan, ideally non stick, put extra virgin olive oil.

Add the onions, a pinch of sea salt and sauté on a gentle heat for few minutes, stirring frequently, until they become soft and translucent.

Add the garlic and mix well with the onions.

Place green beans in a pan, mix well with onions and garlic and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring quite frequently.

Add chopped tomatoes, mix well with green beans and cook for further 10 minutes or until tomatoes start to break down a bit.

Season with sea salt, add fresh chopped parsley and add water.

Partially cover the pan with the lid and cook on a gentle heat for about 60minutes, stirring occasionally. After this simmering time the beans should be nice and soft.

If at any point during the cooking you feel the beans are getting too dry add a splash of water.

Season to taste and serve hot, at room temperature or cold.

Just a thought

The quantity of the tomatoes for this recipe is a guideline only and you can adjust it according to your taste, liking and preference.

For this recipe you can use frozen green beans as well.

This is a great dish to be made ahead and refrigerated overnight.

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Just a thought